Tire wire



Dec. 14, 1937. ELDER 2,102,358

TIRE WIRE Filed Nqv. 18, 1935 liwenfor: FZ/NT' C EL DEE Patented Dec. 14, 1937 PATENT OFFICE I TIRE WIRE Flint 0. Elder, Cleveland, Ohio, assignor to The American Steel and Wire Company of New Jersey, a corporation of New Jersey Application November 18, 1935, Serial No. 50,469

3 Claims.

This invention relates particularly to tire wire, although its principles may be applied wherever it is necessary to vulcanize rubber to steel, one of the objects being to protect steel against corrosion while increasing its ability to form a strong bond with rubber vulcanized to it. Other objects may be inferred from the following disclosure.

As is well known, tire wire is used to form the beads of automobile tires. This tire wire is made of steel and is ordinarily chemically copper or brass coated for the purpose of securing firm adherence with the tire rubber. is relatively thin and sometimes discontinuous the steel is not adequately protected against corro- According to the present invention, tire wire is made by-galvanizing the wire, which may be done in any conventional manner, and then passing the wire through a silver salt solution soas to deposit at least traces of silver on the wire. Pref erably, this is done so that silver is deposited on the galvanized coating in the form of a relative ly thin but appreciable plating of silver. This may be done without resorting to the use of electricity, the chemical action of the silver solution being suflicient. A water solution of silver nitrate and potassium cyanide is preferably used.

' The accompanying drawing illustrates the combination of a steel tire wire I having the 0 galvanized coating 2 and the relatively thin but appreciable plating of silver 3 on the outer surface of this coating 2. A rubber body 4, which Since this coating tected from corrosion, the value of galvanizing being well known. Furthermore, and thishas 5 not heretofore been known, firm adherence with the rubber 4 is secured by the silver plate. A very thin deposit of silver, or even traces of silver, renders the galvanized wire capable of properly bonding with rubber. 10

I claim:

1. The combination of a steel object having a galvanized coating and bearing at least traces of silver on the outer surface of said coating, and a rubber body vulcanized to said steel'object, 15 whereby said object is protected from corrosion by said coating and firm adherence with said rubber body is secured by said silver.

2. The combination of a steel object having a galvanized coating and a relatively thin but appreciabl plating of silver on the outer surface of said coating, anda rubber body vulcanized to said steel object, whereby said object is protected from corrosion by said coating and firm adherence with said rubber body is secured by said 25 silver plating.

, 3. A method of making an article having a steel 

